The Secret Realm of Time, His and Her Life Through the Changes

When Sunan University was founded, its first president was Su Bingyin, a leading figure in materials science in China. Relying on his reputation among universities across the country, he managed to transfer two materials science programs from Jinling University to Sunan University, which served as the foundation for Sunan University's development.

“Sunan University has been doing a good job in academics in recent years and has cultivated many outstanding talents. Why would Wang Jie want to study abroad? Wouldn’t it be better for him to continue his studies at Sunan University?”

"Grandma is promoting Grandpa Su again," Zhou Yanruo whispered to Wang Jie. "Grandma and Grandpa Su are old friends."

The voice wasn't loud, but Grandma still heard it. "Does your Grandpa Su need me to promote him? Kids talk nonsense."

Wang Jie turned to face his grandmother and said politely, "The foresight of international finance is on Wall Street. It's not that we're bad, it's just that they have more to offer. I want to go out and see for myself."

"Yes, he's a thoughtful child."

After a moment's hesitation, Grandma asked again, "Is Wang Jie a local? I think I saw you at the entrance of the alley; your house is at the entrance of the alley..."

"Grandma, are you checking my household registration?" Zhou Yanruo, who was engrossed in eating wontons, looked up and said to her grandmother with dissatisfaction, "Are you going to let Wang Jie eat wontons or not? You keep asking him questions."

Grandma frowned slightly, barely perceptible, ignoring Zhou Yanruo's banter.

She continued, "I heard Ruoruo mention that you're her English teacher at the tutoring center. Ruoruo's English has improved, all thanks to your excellent teaching."

"Grandma, don't say that. It's the result of Zhou Yanruo's own hard work. I didn't do anything."

"Yes, I know whether Ruoruo is working hard or not." Grandma changed the subject and said, "However, I have a request, I don't know if I can make it up."

"Please tell me."

"Ruoruo is a girl after all. Could you please not come home so late at night in the future? If you need tutoring, you can come to our house. There are fewer people at home, and it's quiet and convenient."

Wang Jie blushed, stood up abruptly, and quickly apologized, "Grandma, I'm so sorry, I'm so sorry. I was so careless. I will definitely be more careful in the future."

Grandma waved her hand and said with a smile, "It's alright, just be more careful next time."

Zhou Yanruo forgot about her injured foot and suddenly stood up, then cried out in pain, "Ouch, it hurts so much!" She quickly sat down, lifted her injured foot, puffed out her cheeks, and lashed out at her grandmother, "Grandma, I thought you would be more open-minded than Mom, but I didn't expect that you adults are all the same. You all like to control me and make me do things according to your wishes, never considering my feelings. I have listened to you for 18 years. Now, I am an adult, and I can make my own decisions. You can't control me anymore. I am not a doll in your hands."

After saying that, she jumped up and hopped on one foot down the corridor behind the hall.

Wang Jie stood there awkwardly, conflicted. Going inside seemed inappropriate; after all, this was someone else's home, and the inner part of the hall should be a more private space, unsuitable for receiving guests. But leaving immediately seemed even more impolite; his grandmother was still sitting there, and this conflict was caused by him, so simply walking away was clearly not a good solution.

Just as she was in a dilemma, Grandma spoke up: "I'm sorry to have troubled you, Ruoruo has been spoiled by her family and is always so willful."

"No, no... Zhou Yanruo has always worked very hard."

"Oh, really?" Grandma clearly wanted to go inside to check on Zhou Yanruo's condition. "It's getting late, Wang Jie should go back and rest early too."

"I'll head back now. Sorry to bother you today. Thank you for the wontons, Grandma. They were really delicious."

Wang Jie felt as if he had been granted a pardon and quickly took his leave.

-

The next morning, Jian Zheng came to find Wang Jie.

Do you have class this morning? What time is it?

As soon as Jian Zheng entered the door, he asked Wang Jie.

"Today's class is canceled. The students who were getting tutoring went on a trip with their parents and won't be back until next week. What happened?"

"Oh, even the abbess's disciple can twist his ankle. It seems his skills aren't up to par."

"Stop joking around, don't you have any sympathy? This sprain will affect her test at the end of the month. Sigh, she's worked so hard, if she doesn't get a good score this time, she'll probably be eliminated when she graduates."

"Tsk tsk, this is heartbreaking, tsk tsk..." Jian Zheng said with a pout.

"We should take her to see a doctor today and get an X-ray to see if any bones are broken."

Wang Jie ignored Jian Zheng's teasing.

"How about we go to the traditional Chinese medicine hospital we visited yesterday? For sprains and bruises, we still need to rely on traditional Chinese medicine."

"Okay, I'll send her a message."

Wang Jie walked out.

Where should I send the message?

"The public telephone at the convenience store at the entrance of the alley."

"Come back, come back."

Jian Zheng stood casually in the middle of the room and shouted at him.

"what happened again?"

Wang Jie turned to look at Jian Zheng and then noticed that Jian Zheng was holding a dark object in his hand.

"Big Brother".

Jian Zheng held up the dark object in front of Wang Jie.

“A cell phone, a Motorola cell phone? Where did it come from?” Wang Jie recognized it as an old-fashioned Motorola cell phone at a glance.

“What kind of phone is this? This is an old-fashioned brick phone.” Jian Zheng said proudly, “It’s a graduation gift from my mom. You can try it out first.”

Jian Zheng handed the "big brother" mobile phone to Wang Jie.

"Try what?" Wang Jie was a little confused.

"Send a message to Zhou Yanruo? Are you stupid? Oh, my phone isn't on yet."

Jian Zheng pressed and held the call button on the "big brother" mobile phone. With a crisp startup sound, the screen lit up. He handed the phone to Wang Jie again: "It's working now. I'll show you how."

Wang Jie took the phone and dialed the pager's service hotline directly: "Please page..."

"You know how to use it? Have you used it before?" Jian Zheng asked in surprise as he watched Wang Jie skillfully operate the "big brother" mobile phone.

"Yes, I've used it." Wang Jie handed the phone back to Jian Zheng, trying to cover it up. "I borrowed the phone from a student's parent at their home."

"How about it, I'll give you two days to play?"

Wang Jie laughed and said, "What's so fun about that? I don't need it."

As they were talking, Wang Jie's pager went off, and Zhou Yanruo sent a message: "My bones are fine. My mom's here, she can't get out."

Wang Jie was a little disappointed.

"Are we going to pick up Zhou Yanruo? What did she say?"

Jian Zheng leaned over to look at Wang Jie's pager and saw that Wang Jie had already deleted the message.

"You came to me just to show me your 'big brother' phone?"

"Of course not, I'm not that flashy." Jian Zheng glanced at Wang Jie and continued, "After you left last night, Zhang Qian's outstanding senior came."

"Didn't you say you were accompanying the hospital leaders and couldn't come?"

“He came right after you left, saying he made up an excuse to leave the banquet early, and then came straight here.”

Wang Jie thought to himself, "It seems that this senior is also a man of principle. He would rather skip the banquet hosted by the college leaders than miss his appointment with his junior. No wonder Zhang Qian admires him so much when he talks about this senior. Only outstanding people disdain to curry favor."

"What kind of person is he?" Wang Jie wondered to himself.

"He's a really nice person, very easygoing and talkative. He's probably the youngest teacher at Tsinghua University. He's going to the US as an exchange scholar at the end of this year, and I estimate he'll be promoted to professor when he comes back. That's amazing, truly amazing. You know, that's Tsinghua and Peking University, it's not something to be taken lightly."

Unexpectedly, after just one night of beer and barbecue, Jian Zheng spoke of this senior with obvious admiration.

"Hey, he looks a bit like you."

"Don't talk nonsense, how could that be?"

"No, no, it's more like a resemblance. Senior is also tall, with long arms and legs, fair-skinned, and refined. In short, he's 'handsome,' that's the resemblance. As the saying goes, handsome people are all alike, but ugly people are ugly in their own way."

"What kind of nonsense is this?" Wang Jie chuckled. "What kind of theories are these?"

"It's a bit of a pity to have missed meeting such an outstanding person."

“It’s not like there’s no chance. Just have Zhang Qian arrange it again. Yesterday, from what he said, he’s also involved in Professor Zhou’s lab, so he’ll probably come to Xichuan often.”

What was his major?

"How could I possibly interrogate him? It was just something we talked about over drinks. In short, Zhang Qian is right, he's an outstanding person and worth getting to know."

Jian Zheng fiddled with his mobile phone, then remembered something. He said, "Oh right, I also know that your surname is Yin, Senior Yin."

……